Harry Edwards ('The Lost Chapters')
Not to be confused with his canon appearance in The Walking Dead by EDStudios "I've lived away from humanity so long that sometimes…I guess I kinda…forget what it is," Harry Edwards, also known as the Veteran of Pain and Suffering '''- or more simply '''The Veteran - and also known to the Commonwealth Military as The Executioner, is a main character and a survivor of the outbreak in The Lost Chapters. He is one of the three founders and the former leader of the Commonwealth of New Graystone and a man revered throughout the New North. After destroying a bridge to protect his allies, it was widely believed that he died in the explosion. However, the Veteran is revealed to be alive and fighting a one-man war against the Living, protecting his family from the shadows alongside Miguel, the man who saved him. After killing Ol' Dead Eyes and instigating a series of counter-attacks by the remaining members of the Living and the wrath of Alpha, Edwards forms an alliance with Jane and an old foe in order to protect his family from the shadows. Overview Personality Edwards is typically calm, smart, and a good friend and father figure, but he will often stubbornly cling to his strong personal moral code, which has resulted in numerous bad calls and extra stress within the group. His greatest fault, perhaps, is his uncanny ability to place responsibility on himself and set for himself goals that are impossible to reach. Despite his faults, his combat skill and general care for all members of the group have led him to be looked up to and allowed him to take the leadership role within the group. However, all of this hides a diagnosis of Asperges Syndrome, a condition he has managed to suppress due to his strong willpower. For example, his physical clumsiness and inability to read body language were trained out of him during his strenuous sessions with Gaunter O'Kyle. However, he continues to speak in a long-winded, pedantic and clinical fashion. One of the most notable aspects of his personality is, unfortunately, severe anger issues, resulting in him often losing his temper in stressful situations. Notable examples are his mutilation of Francis during their fight after he threatens to hurt Jess, and his literal beating open of the face of Randall after he horrifically scars AJ, killing him in the process. He also loses his temper with the Commonwealth Council due to their hesitation to go to war with the Government. Often, Edwards has let his anger get the better of him, resulting in him becoming cruel, methodical and even sadistic towards those who have hurt those he loves. The most notable example of this was his slow dismemberment of Chris in revenge for the murder of Charlotte, and continuing to axe at his disembowelled corpse. On occasion, Edwards has fallen victim to a number of vices, including cannabis, violent sex, and alcohol, the latter of which he has abstained from due to his alcoholism, a factor of his personality that has nearly destroyed him in the past. Edwards is also one of the few members of the group to maintain a smoking habit, which he begins after the sabotage of Greencole, and he uses as an alternative to alcoholism; it is one of the few vices of which he has tried to quit but ultimately failed in doing so, especially in times of stress. Edwards is strongly non-religious, admitting to never have been much of a believer and instead puts his faith in his family and the group members around him. He also appears to view religion and belief in God as an interference and a waste of time. Relying on the survival skills he has picked up over the years, Edwards has evolved into a battle-hardened survivor who will protect his family and group without question. In many ways, he has become exactly like James: being ready to destroy a threat, living or dead, without a moment's hesitation, not trusting anyone except for his group, and knowing that with the world the way it is now, there are very few good people left and if you don't fight for your survival, then you will die. In addition to acting like James in many ways, Edwards has displayed similarities to other primary antagonists that he has encountered and killed (or who other members of his group have killed) in the past, particularly Bart Rhodes, Dustbowl, Grenowich, Ajax and even Antony Eden. However, unlike the aforementioned enemy survivors, Edwards retains some of his humanity and honour for the sake of his family and friends and looks to his friends for guidance in making sure that he doesn't completely lose his sanity and devolve into another antagonist. This is in direct contrast to these other antagonists, who have almost completely sacrificed their humanity in favour of personal survival by any means necessary, and who exert unchallenged power and control over other survivors and give into their worst inclinations for their own benefit, rather than the benefit of others. It has often been proposed by some of his fellow survivors that, ever since the death of Holly, Edwards has suffered from an acute death wish. This has been evidenced on several occasions, including when he nearly sacrificed himself during the Soap Factory Massacre and his willingness to go on ahead and put his life at serious risk during missions. However, it is also notable that this behaviour has come and gone, and typically arises whenever he loses someone close to him and can last for days or weeks. After the Battle of Archangel and the six-year time skip, Edwards becomes noticeably softer and more at peace. He modifies his appearance in order to acquire a level of anonymity and accepts his responsibility as the president - and leader - of the State of New Graystone. Now in his early forties, Edwards focuses his experience less on war and more on diplomacy, forging relations with the New Buckingham Corps and the Beacon to the south. He starts to relish the 'Old Man' vibe that the people of the State have given him. He also spends more time with his family, trying to become, in his own words "a human again,". When the Fear begins to make their presence known, Edwards' diplomacy is highlighted as he seeks a more peaceful end to the conflict. However, his old self emerges after Tom's death, but he still managed to show mercy - and even sympathy - to The Lady and Nathan Carlson. As war with the Government begins, Edwards maintains his softer side. However, his war-focussed edge is put to the maximum, forging a war coalition against the Government with his allies. However, with the Government Army marching on the Commonwealth, he does what he thinks is the right thing and shoots an oil tanker, destroying the bridge and defeating the Government. Edwards himself was thrown into the river, with his family and friends believing him to be dead. When Edwards is revealed to be alive, he has reverted to his darker self, killing many members of the Living, decapitating them and placing their heads on pikes in order to strike fear into the Living. Despite missing his family, he refuses to reveal himself to them in order to keep them safe and to maintain his personal war on the Living. After four years living out in the wilderness, Edwards has become an expert survivalist, deciding to live off the land in order to harden himself to his personal mission against the Living. Thanks to Miguel's guidance, he has become an expert hunter and tracker, setting up a series of trackers and handmade sensors to track the movements of animals and herds. He has become so accustomed to living in the wilderness that he has become averse to walls and gates, now preferring to live out in the open and survive on his wits and senses alone. Pre-Apocalypse Main Article: Harry Edwards (EDStudios) Post-Apocalypse Main Article: Harry Edwards (EDStudios) Blood of the Veteran As the Government tank makes its way over the bridge, a weakened Edwards - having been stabbed by Victor Valkyrie - decides to make the ultimate sacrifice and shoots the tank's oil tanker, destroying the approaching army and the bridge. The explosion blows him into the river, rendering him unconscious; as his body is never found, his friends and family believed him to be dead. Whispers Into Screams Killed Victims This list shows the victims Harry Edwards has killed: * Mr Dawid (zombified) * The Soldier (zombified) * Gemma (zombified) * 'Ohio' (indirectly caused) * Matthew Mitchell (caused, alongside his fellow survivors) * Andre Mitchell * Kyle Mitchell (alongside his fellow survivors) * Daniel Cottingham (out of mercy) * 'Washington' * Aaron Ganger (out of mercy) * Leland (out of mercy) * Hometown Roof Lieutenant (before reanimation) * Ashley (zombified) * Declan (caused) * Smitty * Stoffman (indirectly caused) * William Carter (caused) * The Architect (caused) * Martin * Joseph (alive) * Officer Deck * Jones * Zoe's brother (zombified) * Joanne (indirectly caused) * Bart Rhodes (before reanimation) * Janet * Morgan (alongside his fellow survivors) * Bulldog * Rupert * Chris * Tannerson (before reanimation, off-panel) * Dustbowl * Richard (indirectly caused) * Ben Appleby (out of mercy) * Two-Tongue * James Cottingham * Dag * Holly Parker (before reanimation) * Francis (indirectly caused) * Mikhail * Randall * Frontiersmen Guard * 'Aaron' * New Graystone Guard (zombified, out of mercy) * Katrina (indirectly caused) * Becky Stanton (zombified) * Amjori Priest * Frontiersmen General * Norman * Chloe Nikolas (out of mercy) * Joseph (before reanimation) * Gerald * Albert * Jessica (out of mercy) * 'Killer' * Gaunter O'Kyle * Newton * Paul (caused) * Frontiersmen High Priest * Isaac * Abraham * Salt-Upon-Wounds (out of mercy) * Boyle * Berto (caused, before reanimation) * Lady of the Lake * Nathan Carlson (non-canon) * Holt * Victor Valkyrie (alive) * Beta * Ol' Dead Eyes (alive) * 30 unnamed members of the Living (alive, before reanimation) * Numerous counts of zombies and unnamed people Relationships Miguel "Miguel, there, he saved my life. Dragged me from the river, healed me, helped me get back on my feet, build up my strength...I owe him my life," Trivia * As revealed by Berto and the Lady of the Lake, Edwards has a fear of both heights and spiders, although he can handle this fear. He also mentions he has a fear of wolves. * Edwards has the great number of injuries out of any character in the series: ** A circle of scars on his forehead sustained from his battle with Andre Mitchell. ** A long scar on his neck from Andre's machete. ** A flesh wound on the side of his head - a luckily missed headshot. Perpetrator unknown. ** A large range of scars over his arms, legs, torso and back. Sustained from a wolf pack attack that nearly spelt the end of him in Bennington National Park. Even in his middle and late ages, these scars are still prominent. ** His most prominent injury is his 'crippled' eye; the area around his right eye is snow-pale, the white of the eye is red, and the iris has turned yellow. This injury nearly caused him brain aneurysms on several occasions. He wore an eyepatch over the injury from Season 3 ''to ''Season 6. ** His heart was nearly removed from his chest during his battle against Bart Rhodes, leaving a scar just above his heart. ** He lost his middle toe on his left foot during his fight with Tannerson; the injury forced him to adopt a natural limp to maintain balance. ** He lost his left ear after part of it was bitten by a walker and he was forced to remove it to prevent it from affecting him. ** His leg was broken during the final minutes of the Battle of Archangel, resulting in his using a mechanical leg brace and his sword-cane. *** Although he is able to walk without his cane just using his leg brace, in order to do this he must keep the brace painfully tight. **** In the [[The 'New Age' Extension|'New Age' Extension]], his leg was re-broken by Sarah Terringham, rendering this leg brace useless. ** Edwards has a scar on his abdomen from when he was stabbed by Victor Valkyrie and a series of burns on the left side of his body from the bridge explosion. * Edwards has been shown to be one of the few smokers in the series. However, he has been careful not to develop a habit, similarly to his alcoholism. He usually smokes cigars or low tar. * He has been bitten twice, one in the tunnels beneath the Soap Factory, and once by the Knowing One. ** After the former, Edwards was forced to amputate his ear. ** Edwards was not infected after being bitten by the latter, due to the Knowing One not actually having an infectious bite. * Edwards has a diagnosed case of Asperges Syndrome, making him one of two characters with the condition, the other being Carl McKenzie. * He has been shown on several occasions to use a "mind palace", a memory technique that allows him to recall amazing detail. * Although Edwards has primarily shown to be right-handed, on several occasions he has used weapons with his left hand, including rifles, handguns and numerous blades. He is most likely ambidextrous. * His blood type is O+. * His great-grandfather was a World War 2 veteran. * Edwards is from Scotland, the northern-most part of the UK. ** Although he retains his British accent, he has put on a slight southern-American accent to help him blend in with the people around him. * It has been confirmed that Edwards' cousin, Logan, well have a non-canon appearance in The Lost Chapters. Category:Characters Category:Extended Universe Category:Extended Universe Characters Category:'The Lost Chapters'